Recently Robert Capps pointed out in Wired magazine that inexpensive but “good enough” technology is revolutionizing industries ranging from the military to legal services. Technology now permits lawyers to provide online “customized mass production” of common documents at rock bottom prices.

For decades law firms like Pierson Patterson, LLP have used technology to produce extremely cost effecive residential loan documentation. Initially, a lender’s high volume business made it worthwhile to customize complex documents to the lender’s requirements. Today, with online interactivity and “good enough” technology, even ordinary consumers can obtain reasonably tailored legal documents for common legal needs such as an uncontested divorce, name change, will, power of attorney, residential lease, incorporation or independent contractor agreement at prices ranging from around $10.00 to $100.00. Software programs and websites like SmartLegalForms, LegalZoom and Nolo allow a client to answer questions, in a manner similar to TurboTax income tax return preparation software, to generate their own documents. Consumers are willing to risk some imperfections in documentation if they believe the costs of even the simplest documents prepared by an in-person lawyer will suck the profits (or other benefits) out of the tranasaction.

For a long time the legal profession disregarded the leakage of business at the lowest rungs of the legal ladder, recognizing that many form purchasers would not have any legal documentation at all if they could not get it cheaply. That is still true, but today there are also people who can afford to hire a lawyer who choose to create their own documentation using software or an online service. I bet some of the same lawyers who call that foolhardy can afford to hire a CPA, but do their own tax returns with TurboTax. The point is that in the right circumstaces “good enough” legal documents really are good enough.

Solo guru Carolyn Elefant recently discussed what this means for solos. Among other points, she asserted that “cheap and simple” doesn’t mean cheesy. It does require volume, however, and therefore it requires efficient processes and effective use of non-lawyer personnel. She warns that nimble small firms had better jump to supply this demand before well-financed bigger firms recognize the opportunity to use technology to make money while they sleep.

In all the discussion of “cheap and simple” and of corporate clients wanting lawyers to weigh risks and benefits, we may be overlooking an important benefit for lawyers in this trend. I am reminded of the mantra I developed for myself 15 years ago as a legal perfectionist struggling to accomplish two goals: 1) keep legal fees down for my clients, and 2) get home sooner. Every day I had to remind myself: “Good enough is, well… good enough!”

In short, clients clamoring for “good enough” is good news. Voltaire said, “The perfect is the enemy of the good,” and that certainly plays out in the practice of many lawyers. I often work with attorneys hobbled by perfectionism. They procrastinate getting started on a project because they aren’t absolutely sure how to complete it, or they can’t stop revising a document until someone tears it out of their hands. Many cause themselves a great deal of unnecessary stress, followed by lost revenues as they write off their time due to inefficiency or client complaints about the bill.

Although exactitude will still have its place in the practice of law, some of us can celebrate our client’s request for “good enough.” It just might be the ticket to stress reduction and a little work-life balance for lawyers.

“Equity investment in or outside ownership of law firms will be neither a panacea nor an unalloyed good — mistakes will be made, lines will be crossed, abuses might well take place. No innovation arrives perfectly safe and sound. But what such investment does offer is something the legal services marketplace has needed for too long: law firm management singularly driven to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and above all, client satisfaction, because it makes business sense to do so.”

I also discussed some of the likely impacts shortly after the first Australian law firm public offering in 2007. While non-lawyer investment may result in the decline in professionalism that many lawyers fear, the decline has already been so significant in the last couple of decades that I’m not sure it would be that noticeable. I acknowledged some other detriments, but pointed to these additional benefits:

“As true business managers and marketing experts have the opportunity to share in the profits they generate in a law firm, the great class chasm between lawyers and non-lawyers within the firm may diminish. Firms may develop more balanced methods of valuing the contributions of its employees, as training and mentoring become recognized as being essential to the stability and productivity of the firm. Perhaps even teamwork could become popular. As Prof. Regan puts it, ‘investor preference for stability thus could temper what some see as excessively individualistic tendencies in modern law practice.’”

The dam has already been breached by the changes in UK and Australian law permitting outside investment. In an international market, US and Canadian lawyers already find themselves in competition with UK and Australian firms. That competition will only increase as investors with business acumen drag law firms into the 21st century to eliminate what Furlong calls “wasteful processes, poor client communication, and amateurish management.” It may not be immediate, smooth or painless, but as those firms become more efficient and cost effective, they will easily steal away North American-based, but internationally functioning, clients.

I can’t say how long it will take, but I believe one day we will have publicly held law firms in the U.S. for many reasons, some of which I described in the 2007 post. That day may be hastened by the current unprecedented economic decline in the legal industry, combined with heightened pressures from multi-national clients to make changes that lower legal costs. Previously disinterested UK firms may now be imagining what they could do with those capital infusions. They may be a little more flexible about letting go of archaic and wasteful practices.

U.S. and Canadian firms that want to compete in the future should start innovating now by really listening to experts in process improvement, management and marketing. Actually, that would be the smart thing to do even without the threat of future well-funded business-savvy competitors. I won’t hold my breath, however.

Most lawyers work with nonprofits for laudable and generous reasons, but even the curmudgeons among us have found that serving on a such boards can be good for their law practice. Nonprofits usually seek out business leaders and prominent citizens to serve on their boards, so board membership gives you a chance to get to know and interact regularly with quality potential clients and referral sources.

Whether you are already on a nonprofit board, or hope to get on one, there are some important new developments in IRS regulations to pay attention to. A recent article published by the Business Law Section of the ABA describes the regulations and their impact on board members. Because such IRS filings are often handled by accountants, even some nonprofit lawyers may not be aware that nonprofit organiztions have some significant new disclosure responsibilities.

New disclosure provisions respecting the governance and management of large nonprofits have been added to the annual filing on Form 990. In addition to describing what the organization has achieved in carrying out its exempt purposes, it now must disclose the process the board employed to review the filing. The organization has to disclose whether it has adopted policies on a number of governance issues such as conflicts of interest, document retention, and whistle blowers. Although such policies are not required, because Form 990 is a publicly available document, by implication the failure to have such policies may impact the organization’s fund-raising ability.

Small nonprofits also have new requirements. Those with revenues below $25,000 annually, used to be exempt from annual filing, but now must file an abbreviated Form 990-N. The FAQs about Form 990-N are located here. Churches are still exempt from filing Forms 990, 990-EZ and 990-N.

These new requirements may create a good bit of new work for nonprofit lawyers as they help organizations develop new policies and draft appropriate disclosures about them. All lawyers on large nonprofit boards are encouraged to take a look at the ABA article to see how complicated, wide-ranging and potentially troublesome the ramifications of these disclosure requirements can be.

Referrals Check You Out on the Web

Some lawyers say they don’t need a website because most of their business comes from referrals. According to Margot W. Teleki in the July 17, 2006 issue of the New Jersey Law Journal, “the first thing your referral will do is check out your firm’s web site before giving you a call to see who and what you are and how well you’re suited to meet his needs.” Gerry Morris, a white collar criminal lawyer in Austin, Texas, says “Sometimes clients referred to me by other lawyers come into my office with a printout from my website in hand.”

If your firm doesn’t have a website, could you be losing referral business without knowing it? When your prospective client can’t find you on the web, could that send the message that your firm is too small, too new, too unsophisticated, too unsuccessful, or too behind the times to handle the good quality work you desire to attract?

Small Firms Lag Behind

Legal marketing consultants Alyn-Weiss concluded that “Law firm web sites are the single most effective marketing tool employed by corporate, transactional and defense firms.” In their 2008 national survey of 81 firms, 69% had “received work directly or by referral during the past 24 months” from their website. The average size of the firms responding was 46. Yet the American Bar Association’s Legal Technology Survey for 2008 reported that only 51% of solo practitioners in the U.S. and 77% of small firms (2 to 9 attorneys) have a website. They lag behind bigger firms. One hundred per cent of U.S. firms larger than 50 attorneys report having a website, and 97% of those with between 10 to 50 lawyers have one. Although we don’t have the correlating statistics on Canadian firms, we would expect to find significant differences between large and small firms in Canada as well.

Why don’t the remaining solo and small firms have websites? Some small firms with stretched resources believe a website is beyond their financial means because they don’t have the budget to hire an IT consultant. Others struggle just to keep up with their clients’ legal needs and still have some semblance of a personal life. They believe they just don’t have the necessary time to invest in creating a firm website. Some worry they won’t get the content right, but content can be modified and updated frequently. A few techno-phobes think they can outrun the tsunami and retire from practice before websites become de rigueur. (They are the same ones who thought they could avoid a desktop computer and email.)

Benefits of Websites

Besides avoiding looking inadequate or behind the times, why would lawyers want websites? Websites give clients a chance to get to know you and your qualifications at their convenience and before they are ready to make the commitment of a phone call. Websites can brag on your achievements and demonstrate your expertise, which decorum would prohibit in person. Informative articles and other valuable content pertinent to clients’ needs build trust because you provide service before ever meeting with the client. Websites save time and improve staff productivity by answering those recurring client questions about office hours, location, and how the legal process typically works. They can include intake forms for clients to complete before their first appointment or lists of essential documentation to bring to the appointment.

Most importantly, a website with useful content containing the words clients search on reaches clients when they are interested, 24/7. Morris says his website (www.egmlaw.com) brought in enough business in the first year to more than pay for itself. Soon it so out-performed his old tried and true Yellow Pages ad that he canceled the ad.

Getting Started

If you are now squirming in your seat with awareness that your firm just has to get a website up, how do you go about it? Begin by shopping the competition. Many websites have the name and web link of the designer in small print at the bottom of the page. Contact designers whose work you like for an estimate. Ask your friends and colleagues whether they would recommend their web designer, and what costs to expect. You can also find plenty of designers by entering terms like “websites for lawyers” or “law firm web designers” into a search engine. Websites like www.elance.com and www.guru.com provide a forum for freelance web designers to bid on your project and provide links to portfolios of their previous work. Those sites also post satisfaction ratings and comments by previous customers.

What kind of expense should you expect? That depends on the number of pages and complexity of your site. A firm of 5 to 10 lawyers might expect to pay $2,000 to $8,000 for a custom site. However, according to Luke Gilman (www.GilmanCreative.com), a web designer turned law student, a firm on a tight budget could still get a custom web design up for under $1,000.

Websites on a Tight Budget

For even greater cost savings, check out the many template websites that are available. Sure, some other firms may have a website that looks similar to yours, but that’s better than being invisible! They usually have many templates to choose from and are so user-friendly that “even a lawyer” can create his or her own website in a day. I created one for a non-profit I was involved with in about 8 hours of work using www.SpinSite.com for $12 per month. One of my clients has gotten great results using www.SquareSpace.com for $14 per month.

For templates specially designed for law firms, take a look at sites like www.lawsitesdev.com, www.legalwebdesigner.com and www.easylawsite.com. Their five or six page law firm websites cost from $400 to $1,000, plus a monthly fee of $25 to $40. That usually includes domain name registration, hosting fees, and a limited number of email accounts. Sometimes web traffic statistics are even included in the package. Sometimes web traffic statistics are even included in the package. For a real bargain, however, check out the create-a-website packages at www.easylawweb.com, where you can get a five-page site for only about $6 per month, or www.citymax.com for $20 per month, including the hosting fee and an email account. Finally, for the ultimate bargain, get a minimal site free at www.justia.com.

Legal Directory Websites

Attorneys can also get template websites created for them at online legal directories such as www.lawyers.com and www.findlaw.com. A search for a lawyer usually brings up listings in those two directories on the first page of any search engine. Due to the directory listing cost, even the simplest template site runs about $2,000 per year, and more targeted premium listings can cost much more. Many lawyers have found directory listings worth the price, although results may vary depending on the region and practice specialty. Even some firms that already have custom websites pay the fee to have their site linked to a directory listing.

With all these options, the only excuse for not having a website today is that you already have more business than you want!

This article has been adapted from articles by the author published in the Texas Bar Journal in March 2007 and in Addendum, the online magazine of the Canadian Bar Association, in August 2008.

Debra L. Bruce is president of Lawyer-Coach (www.lawyer-coach.com), a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer credentialed by the International Coach Federation (ICF). She is the former Vice-Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of the Houston chapter of ICF.em>

1. Beef Up Your Resume.

You probably have more time available for research and writing now. Establish your expertise (or develop some), and give your resume some additional sparkle, by writing an article on a legal topic you are interested in. You don’t need to write a law review article. Contact industry magazines, legal newspapers, business journals and online publications. They need new articles every month or even more frequently, and most don’t require blue book citation. Many employers are more likely to read articles in such publications than in law reviews.

Your article will signal that you are an authority on the subject. Don’t be intimidated by lack of experience. If the topic is reasonably cutting edge, after your research you may be as expert as anyone else. As a second year associate, I wrote an in-depth research memo on an emerging legal issue for a client. Later, a partner asked permission to use my memo for his CLE presentation. (Today, I would ask to be a co-presenter with the partner to further establish my expertise.) Regardless of the legal topic, you will still know more about it than your lay readers.

2. Make New Connections Through Writing.

Take full advantage of your writing project by contacting potential employers to interview them for your article. Be sure to name the publication, in order to provide the credibility that entices that V.I.P. to take your call.

Explain to the V.I.P. that you would like to include quotes from important people in the industry, like her. Assure her that you will allow her to approve the quote before publication and you shouldn’t need more than 15 minutes of her time. Most people will be pleased to be quoted as an authority or leader, if they get to approve the content.

Use this as an opportunity to develop a relationship with your interviewee. After you write the portion of the article with her quote, send it to her and follow up with a phone call to get her approval. That call gives you a chance to chat briefly and develop some additional rapport. Later send her the whole article in the form sent to the editor, and invite her reaction. Finally, send her a courtesy copy of the publication when it comes out.

3. Ask for Advice.

This process will allow you to interact with your interviewee three to five times, and by then you will have the beginnings of a relationship. As you establish rapport, you should be in a position to ask for advice. Don’t ask for a job. Ask for names of additional people to contact for the article. Ask for advice about securing a position in this market. Ask who may be hiring or farming out work of the type you are looking for. Ask whether you may use her name when you call people she suggests. If she has a position opening up or some work to outsource to you, she will probably mention it. In any event, once she gives you advice (especially if you are giving her some favorable publicity), she will be on your team. And she’ll want her team to win. You may be surprised at the subsequent efforts she makes on your behalf, unbidden.

4. Nurture the Relationship.

Endeavor to keep the relationship alive with each person you interview. Send a thank you note, and let her know how you followed up on her advice. After publication, send her an email passing on the comments you received about the article or share with her the follow-up questions it generated. You can notify her when you post a link to the article in a listserv or on Twitter or LinkedIn. (You will take those steps to help publicize your article and your name, of course.) You can send her links to articles by other authors on a related topic, if she expressed interest in the subject. Keep your eyes open for ways to do something of benefit to her. Spread out your contacts with her, but make them frequent enough and useful enough to keep your name top-of-mind for opportunities that arise later.

5. Rinse and Repeat.

Freelance writers know how to sell essentially the same article numerous times. Change the title and tweak your language. Do a new round of interviewing with different people to build more relationships. Substitute new quotes and send your “new and improved” article to a different publication. Be sure to do your homework, however. Some publications require original content. Others accept reprints or similar work. List all your articles on your resume.

6. Expand Your Connections Through Speaking.

Optimize your writing efforts by offering to speak on the same or a similar topic. Find organizations that may be interested in your talk in the Encyclopedia of Associations and by searching online. Service organizations like Rotary, Lions and Optimists need speakers every week. Industry association meetings can put you face-to-face with a roomful of potential employers. To build on those connections, offer to send your audience additional information or to discuss their questions in greater depth later.

In preparation for your talk, ask for permission to interview a few of the expected attendees to make sure you address the issues they’re concerned about. Not only will it help make your speech more relevant to your audience, you’ll develop additional relationships. Of course, just as in writing your article, you can use your speech as an excuse to contact someone you would like an introduction to.

If the people you contact are high profile, you might even do a little name-dropping during your talk, by saying, “When I spoke with Ms. Big Shot a couple of weeks ago, she said that companies like hers were most concerned about….” The audience’s impression of you may bump up a couple of points because of the company you keep.

7. Rinse and Repeat Again.

Change the title and substitute issues appropriate for a new audience. Your resume keeps growing, and so do your connections. Are any of your local bar association sections interested in your topic? You may be able to tweak the topic to make it interesting to bar sections other than the one in your practice area. For example, suppose you are a corporate lawyer who has written an article for the local business journal and spoken to the corporate bar about the importance of shareholder agreements in closely held companies. You could teak your topic for the family law section, to discuss how shareholder agreements may impact divorce negotiations.

These steps will enhance your reputation and expertise, while building and nurturing relationships. If there just aren’t any jobs out there, use these strategies to develop clients for that new law firm you establish. If you have trouble coming up with a topic you can write or speak about, feel free to call me for a brief complimentary brainstorming session.

Best of luck to you!

Reprinted with permission from the June 11, 2009 issue of The Legal Intelligencer. © 2009 Incisive Media US Properties, LLC. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. All rights reserved.

Debra L. Bruce is president of Lawyer-Coach (www.lawyer-coach.com), a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer credentialed by the International Coach Federation (ICF). She is the former Vice-Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of the Houston chapter of ICF.

Small Firm Opportunities

1. Big companies with shrinking budgets may take a chance on smaller law firms with good reputations and less expensive fee structures. Make sure you keep your corporate relationships current.
2. Your firm may attract higher quality, experienced attorneys or staff at reasonable salaries, as the result of layoffs from corporations or large firms. Some lawyers may be glad to work on an Of Counsel basis or office sharing basis, just to have a respectable place to land with the possibility of referral business.
3. More graduating law students will have difficulty finding jobs, and they may seek positions as law clerks or even unpaid interns, just to get experience. Get some help or delegate tasks you don’t like to do, without over-extending your budget.

Take Advantage of Slower Business

If your business has slowed down, this too shall pass. Take advantage of the additional time you now have available. Do what you kept wishing you had time for, when you were too busy. Here are a few suggestions to consider.

1. Take a vacation. Make it up to your family for all those nights and weekends at the office. If you are concerned about expenses, there are some good travel bargains now, but you don’t have to leave town. Be a tourist at home and pay attention to those you love. As a lawyer, I found that one way to generate additional business was to book a vacation with non-refundable tickets. Perhaps it was the perverse humor of the Fates, or the fact that I informed clients I would be unavailable for a week. Business almost always ticked up. Hint: notify your clients enough in advance that you have time to complete those “can’t wait” projects.

2. Clean up your office. You always intend to get more organized, don’t you? This is your chance. Don’t waste it.

3. Enhance your business relationships. Rekindle relationships with former clients, law school classmates, and referral sources that you haven’t talked to in a while. Check in to see how the economy is affecting someone today. Call your former client to ask how things are going after the completion of that trial or deal closing. Pass on useful articles to referral sources and prospective clients. Most people appreciate help in keeping up with our rapidly changing world. The recent legislative developments provide ample opportunity to benefit them while showcasing your expertise.

4. Write an article or prepare a talk. Think of 10 tips or 10 traps for the unwary that you can share with your prospective client audience. Contact organizations that your prospective clients may be involved in, to see if they would be interested in your article for their publication or your talk at an upcoming meeting.

5. Attend meetings of client industry associations and bar associations. Get involved, so that more people will get to see how responsible and trustworthy you are. Once you build up that trust, they will assume they can count on your legal work, too. You’ll build new relationships with potential clients and referral sources. You will probably learn something valuable, too.

6. Catch up on CLE requirements. Don’t wait until your birthday month this year. If your area of practice looks like it will be down for a long time, take courses in a new practice area to add to your repertoire.

7. Do some pro bono work. Most unhappy lawyers have lost the sense of meaning and purpose in their work. Reignite your passion for the law, and feel good about yourself, by making a difference to someone who really needs legal services, but can’t afford them. Some volunteer lawyer associations provide training and mentoring, in case your expertise doesn’t lend itself well to pro bono work. You may even get training in a new practice area, if you need some.

8. Catch up on technology. Explore the unused capabilities of your case management software; learn how to have a less-paper office; find out the benefits of online social media; create or update your firm’s website; start a blog; find useful new apps for your iPhone or Blackberry; or test out speech recognition software for your dictation. You can’t outrun (or out-retire) the tsunami of technological advances in the legal world, so you better learn to swim!

9. Mentor newer lawyers. Young lawyers wish they had more mentoring, and older lawyers wish the younger ones were more experienced or more professional. Increase the value of your firm and the productivity of your less experienced lawyers by teaching them what they need to know. If you don’t have any younger lawyers in your firm, raise the quality and perception of our profession by mentoring a recent law school grad. Just contact the nearest law school to let them know you are available.

10. Take care of yourself. For once you have time to exercise. Besides improving your health, it will reduce stress, anxiety or the blues. Sleep late a few mornings. What can feel more luxurious? Actually prepare a healthy meal for yourself and your family. Get your kids or spouse to join in, and you can turn a chore into a time of reconnection and bonding. Spend some quiet time alone each day. That will increase your resilience, lower your blood pressure, and open your mind to creative solutions that didn’t occur to you before.

Every cloud has a silver lining. Look for opportunity in adversity. Enjoy your new-found flexibility. If nothing else, call your mother. You know you never do that enough!

© 2009 Debra L. Bruce

Debra L. Bruce is President of Lawyer-Coach LLC, a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer to be credentialed by the International Coach Federation. She is Vice Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of Houston Coaches Inc. You can email her at debra@lawyer-coach.com.

The only guaranteed strategy is to use a WABAC (or Wayback) machine to erase any of your mistakes or entitled attitude exhibited over the last two years, plus bring in $1 million of business. If those aren’t options for you, try these eight tips. “Results may vary” depending on the culture and financial condition of your law firm, but at least these tips will improve your chances.

1. Be efficient and responsive. Don’t let any projects linger on your desk. Some attorneys are so uncomfortable with having insufficient work to do, that they procrastinate on completing the work they have. Be aware that partners will expect you to get projects done faster than in the past, because they don’t think you have competing demands for your time. Although you will feel pressure to bill more hours, don’t milk your projects or pad your time. Partners feel pressure from clients to keep legal fees down. If there is any fluff, they are more likely to cut your time than their own, so don’t give them an excuse. Write downs don’t look good on your report card.

2. Do perfect work. Don’t let even a typo slip past you. Double check everything. When difficult choices have to be made between two good lawyers, even minor mistakes become conspicuous. Use all the resources available to you to find the answers you need. If you draft a research memo, use proper legal citation. Parallel citation tends to impress the “love the law” and law review types.

3. Be proactive. Don’t sit in your office waiting for the assignment partner to call with work or the Sword of Damocles to fall. Seek out additional projects from partners who still have work to share. If there is a dearth of work in your section, is there work in a related or tangential section? If you have been a securities lawyer up to now, can you help out a securities litigation team? If you are a real estate lawyer, can you bring some additional insight to loan workouts with real property collateral? If you are a corporate lawyer, how will your knowledge of the liabilities and responsibilities of corporate directors benefit your clients in times when their past decisions are coming into question? Will your experience in doing due diligence for mergers and acquisitions be helpful to bankruptcy lawyers trying to assess the assets of a troubled company? How can you repackage and market your experience? If you are a first or second year lawyer with little experience in anything, capitalize on your research skills and your familiarity with blogs and other Internet resources. You have extra time, so put on your thinking cap and get creative. Research your firm’s clients and their industries. What kind of problems are they experiencing or are they likely to experience soon? Do a little proactive legal research on the issues they are facing. Be the associate who knows the most about the client’s industry and feed useful information to the partners who work with them. Make them look good to the clients. You will get a reputation as a go-getter, a team player and someone to count on.

4. Demonstrate your team player attitude. If you don’t have enough work to do, can you offer to do some training or mentoring of newer associates in your area of expertise? Can you design a CLE or other training program that your law firm can offer to in-house attorneys or business people about current issues? Can you offer to research that subject or create the PowerPoint with interesting video clips or animation? Don’t consider any task beneath you, and be caring and considerate of all staff. You don’t know whose ear they have, and most of them are even more worried about layoffs than lawyers are (justifiably, given the statistics).

5. Cultivate face-to-face conversations. So many lawyers have gotten used to communicating by email or text messaging, even when the recipient is just down the hall. Drop into a partner’s office when you have a question. Say more than “hello” at the coffee bar. Invite a partner to lunch. (Gasp!) Face-to-face interactions build stronger relationships. It is easier to lay off an invisible person you don’t have much of a relationship with. Get out of your office and interact.

6. Engage in marketing and bar or civic activities. Create as much of a public profile for yourself and your law firm as you can. Demonstrate that you are not just a fungible technician who becomes a liability when there is not enough work. You are an asset with the potential to be a rainmaker one day. I’m not suggesting you go out and ask for business. I’m recommending that you actively build and maintain relationships. Invite a firm client close to your age and experience level to lunch. Get on the board of a charitable organization. Take on a role in the young lawyer’s division of the bar association, even if it is just as a greeter. Write an article for an industry publication read by your firm’s clients. (If you still get laid off, these relationships and resume builders will also be useful in your job search.) If you know nothing about marketing, learn about it. Currently my favorite books about business development for lawyers are Rainmaking Made Simple by Mark Maraia and Trust-Based Selling by Charles Green.

7. Record your efforts. Turn in the marketing and administrative time that you spend. Provide enough detail to demonstrate the value of your efforts. Give partners something to review besides your meager billables, and some evidence to cite if they go to bat for you.

8. Watch your words (and actions). Don’t say or do anything that can come back to haunt you. Gossip increases in stressful times. Do your best to avoid being the bearer or subject of it. This especially applies to those anonymous blogs, tweets and comments on the Internet and fun photos and status updates on Facebook. Sometimes they turn out to be not so anonymous or fun. Be careful about imbibing one too many “stress reducers.” Loose lips sink ships.

May the Force be with you.

Reprinted with permission from the April 9, 2009 issue of The Legal Intelligencer. © 2009 Incisive Media US Properties, LLC. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. All rights reserved.

Debra L. Bruce is president of Lawyer-Coach (www.lawyer-coach.com), a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer credentialed by the International Coach Federation (ICF). She is Vice-Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of the Houston chapter of ICF.

Austin Bar Association
Building and Managing Client Relationships in Challenging Economic Times

816 Congress Avenue, Suite 700
Austin, TX 78701
Friday, March 27, 2009
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM

4th Friday Free CLE
CLE: 1 hour including .75 hours of ethics
Cost: Free, open only to members of the Austin Bar Association

RSVP to Mollie Gallagher at (512) 472-0279, mollie@austinbar.org or visit www.travisbar.com.

1. Be proactive.

Minimize the number of occasions when you need to be reactive or negative. Do you work with a partner who has a pattern of dumping a new project on your desk on Friday at 3:00 p.m. with a Monday morning deadline? Try dropping by his office earlier in the week to discuss what may be coming up.

You might say, “I have an important commitment this weekend, so I want to make sure I cover all the bases for you by Friday. (Note: It’s important to insert that “for you.” It reassures him that you have his interests in mind.”) Are there any projects that you could find the need to hand off to me later? If so, I would like to know about them now, so that I don’t have to leave you in the lurch.” That last part forewarns him that you intend to stand firm, yet you care about what he cares about…him.

2. Don’t over-disclose.

You may get some inquiries about the nature of your obligation. If your commitment involves giving yourself some much needed rest and rejuvenation time, or if he has a tendency to judge that his work is more important than your son’s fourth birthday, just tell him “It’s personal.” He can’t quibble with the unknown.

When you provide excuses or too much justification for your decision, you imply that you are unsure of its validity or your worthiness. You also give the partner an opportunity to try to “solve your problem” so that you can log more hours for him. He may judge that you aren’t serious about your career if your choices don’t align with his value system, even if there isn’t really an emergency on his part. Many baby boomers felt they had no choice but to pay their dues, even when it required neglecting their families. They will not respect you if you tell them you are putting a t-ball game before the client’s needs.

3. Hold your boundary diplomatically.

Most partners will back off when you say something is personal. Some, however, may inquire about it out of concern for you. A few of the terminally insensitive types may muscle forward in hopes that they can avoid inconveniencing themselves by planning ahead. When someone tries to weasel more information out of you, it can be very effective to put a non-threatening expression on your face, look them in the eye, and say nothing, or move on to the next topic. If you feel compelled to respond, try repeating, “It’s personal,” or say, “I’d rather not talk about it.” Reassure him that you want to make sure the client’s needs get served, so you would like to go over the list of projects and priorities while there is time to address them.

4. Head off negative assumptions.

Whenever you have something touchy to say, you will be dealing with assumptions about your intentions and your motives. Research shows that when people dislike or disagree with someone’s behavior, they tend to assign negative motives and negative character traits to the actor. (“He’s trying to avoid work. He’s not a team player.”) When they behave similarly, however, they tend to see the behavior as motivated by the particular circumstances, rather than by their own character. (“I’m worn out and overloaded, and I just can’t fit another thing on my plate.”) The tendency to misjudge another’s intentions is so pervasive that psychologists give it a name: Fundamental Attribution Error.

To escape the impact of Fundamental Attribution Error, design your response to counter or mitigate any negative assumptions you think they could have. Also reveal your positive intentions or motives. Let them know that you share their goals and concerns. For example, you might say, “It’s important to me to be a team player. It is also important to do a good job and keep the commitments I have already made. If I take on one more assignment right now, something will fall through the cracks. Would you rather get someone else to work on it or negotiate an extension with the client?” To the boss who makes last minute demands, you might say, “As you know, I have tackled three Friday afternoon rush assignments in the past six weeks. It’s not that I’m not committed or that I’m unwilling to put in the hours. I want to make sure we impress our clients. This time, however, I have an obligation I can’t push aside. Would you rather find someone else, or would you like me to come in early on Monday to get started on it?”

5. Offer an alternate solution.

Notice that in the previous paragraph each example included an alternative option. Usually a partner just wants to get the assignment off her desk and on to the desk of someone else who is competent to handle it. If you know of another associate who might be able to take it on, consider negotiating with that associate. You could agree to trade this rush for a different last minute assignment “to be named later.” (You might even consider bailing someone else out first, when it is convenient for you, so that you can call in that debt when you need to.) Then you can present the partner with a solution at the same time that you decline the assignment. You will be demonstrating that you are responsible and resourceful, and that the partner can still count on you to take care of her interests.

In the competitive law firm environment, it’s important to maintain your reputation as someone who can be counted on. By the same token, you must safeguard your emotional and physical health to survive the long haul. You’ll need superior communication skills to pull it all off. Practice these five strategies in less threatening situations outside the office. Then when a sticky situation comes up at work, you’ll be able to handle it with poise.

Reprinted with permission from the February 27, 2009 issue of The Legal Intelligencer. © 2009 Incisive Media US Properties, LLC. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. All rights reserved.

Debra L. Bruce is President of Lawyer-Coach LLC (www.lawyer-coach.com), a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer credentialed by the International Coach Federation (ICF). She is Vice Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of Houston Coaches Inc., the Houston chapter of ICF.

1. Budget marketing time. Decide how much time you will commit to marketing activities each week. It’s important to set a minimum so you will develop a regular habit of marketing activity. You can’t postpone your marketing efforts until you are low on work, because marketing legal services is a long-term process. You have to plant and nurture seeds before you can harvest the fruit. You can’t wait until you need the apples to plant the apple seeds.

Budget a minimum of five hours per week. That will allow for 10 to 15 minutes per day for making little connections by emails, notes or phone calls. Your other marketing activities will require time blocks of approximately two hours each. You might choose two per week from the categories of (a) in-person meeting over lunch, breakfast, dinner, coffee or cocktails with a client, prospect or referral source, (b) group networking activity such as a bar, civic, or industry association meeting, (c) writing or blogging, (d) online networking in listservs, social networking sites like LinkedIn, chat rooms or forums, or (e) speaking. Some weeks all of your efforts will fall in one category, but try to diversify your efforts over time.

2. Set monthly goals and action plans for developing relationships within your target audience. Choose just one target market to start. Begin building a relationship with at least one new person in that market per month. Experiment with strategies to come in contact with new prospects. If your clients are companies, what industry associations do they belong to? Can you attend their meetings? What conferences or trade shows do they attend? Can you take on a leadership or other visible role in the industry organization once you attend consistently for a while? Can you blog, write articles for their publications, or speak at their conferences? Write down the actions you plan to take.

If your clients tend to be individuals, what problems or other characteristics do they have in common? What groups do they join? Who else serves the same types of people? For example, if you have a wills, trusts and estates practice, can you speak to organizations that financial planners belong to? Can you be a speaker at an event a financial planner hosts for her clients? Can you be an invited guest? Can you speak to retirement or assisted living associations or organizations for new parents or for caregivers of aging parents?

Personal injury lawyers and other litigators often find this step difficult because most people don’t expect to need their services. You may need to focus on developing relationships with referral sources. Can you speak to or write for consumers’ rights groups, union organizations, safety councils or organizations that provide support or resources for people with related problems or injuries? Who else serves the same people – hospitals, doctors, clinics, chiropractors, physical therapists, massage therapists, community services, psychologists, credit counselors, auto repair shops? Are there close knit groups of people who share information and resources with each other, like neighborhood associations, ethnic associations, or religious associations? Can you be a part of and play a helpful role to any of those groups, and thereby become a trusted resource whose name would get passed around? Can you educate them about the legal issues that may affect their members or customers?

Set goals to regularly attend meetings in organizations where you can build relationships with referral sources or potential clients. Designate at least one meeting that you will attend every month. Sporadic attendance gets associated with unreliability, and won’t give you enough exposure to build relationships. You may need to visit several organizations before you find the best ones for you. Look for meetings in which you are interested in the topics discussed, the cause they support, and the people who attend.

3. Set goals and action plans for repeatedly connecting with existing clients and prospects. When a need arises, people prefer to take their problems (or stake their reputation on a referral) to someone they trust. Trust takes time to build, and if you don’t connect with them sufficiently often, they may not think of you when a need arises. Create your reserved parking spot in their brain on the subject you can help with. Set goals regarding how often you will contact them or show up where they show up.

You can connect in many ways. Send a newsletter with useful information. Give them a resource for help with their non-legal problem. Call to check on how the economy is affecting them and their business. Invite them to a social event related to their interests. Share a restaurant review for their favorite food. Keep them abreast of cases or legislation affecting them. Bump into them at meetings they attend. Send a birthday card or holiday card. Send condolences when their team loses a big game, or congratulations if they win. Ask them to be a speaker at an event you help plan. Interview them for an article you write. Every time you connect again, you are reinforcing that reserved parking spot. If you are genuinely interested in helping them with their concerns (regardless of whether they relate to legal issues), you build trust.

4. Track your efforts and your next actions. You may have a distorted picture of what works if you don’t keep records. Make a note every time you connect with your targeted prospect or referral source. When your record shows that it took 12 “touches” to get that new piece of business, you won’t stop at 3 next time.

Your record should also capture your plan for the next action to take. Did you promise to send something? Will you need to set up another meeting when you get additional information? Are you waiting on a response from them? Are you both planning to attend the same conference? When will you touch base with them again?

Choose a recording method you are comfortable with. You can use case management software, a three-ring binder, a chart in Excel or WordPerfect, or even a legal pad. Some attorneys keep a notebook with a page for each prospect and a running narrative of their goals and the actions they take toward them. Some create a prospect chart with names, contact information, decision makers, the needs they have uncovered, results of meetings or calls, and next action steps. You can email me for samples of some tracking charts in Excel.

5. Review your goals, plans and results regularly. That will help you keep a marketing focus and show you where to make course corrections. Over time you will get a better sense of what works for you and how long it takes. Be patient and persistent!

© 2009 Debra L. Bruce

This article was originally published in The Practice Manager in February 2009.

Debra L. Bruce is President of Lawyer-Coach LLC (www.lawyer-coach.com), a law practice management coaching and training firm. She practiced law for 18 years before becoming the first Texas lawyer to be credentialed by the International Coach Federation. She is Vice Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and a past leader of Houston Coaches Inc. You can email her at debra@lawyer-coach.com.